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RPS Students Compete in Inaugural FIRST Tech Challenge Robotics Scrimmage

Last week, students from around the district competed in the inaugural FIRSTTech Challenge Robotic Scrimmage at Richmond Community High School.

Hosted by FIRST Chesapeake and sponsored by Qualcomm, the event brought together middleand high school students from Richmond Community High School, John Marshall High School,Franklin Military Academy, Boushall Middle School, Lucille M. Brown Middle School, HendersonMiddle School, and Elkhardt-Thompson Middle School.

The students worked for over eight weeks to design and build their robots for the FIRST RoverRuckus Challenge. The challenge used a playing field where teams strategized, form alliances,and exercised critical thinking skills. Students and their robots played a space-themed gamethat included obstacles such as descending from a space Lander, collecting and sortingminerals from a crater and navigating a 12’X12’ playing field. Their robots were required to workautonomously, as well as with drivers, to score points.

"This was such an inspirational evening! So many Metro Richmond organizations came togetherto make this scrimmage possible, but what really impressed me were the teams,” said LeighannScott Boland, Executive Director, FIRST Chesapeake Robotics. “Not only did these RPSstudents and their coaches spend countless after-school hours learning new skills and buildingcompetition grade robots, they also stepped up to help each other during the event. When youwork with young people of this caliber, you realize that our future is in good hands.”

The teams were judged based upon their technical knowledge, creativity, teamwork, publicspeaking, and enthusiasm.

“Innovation is messy and we need to be willing to be part of the mess as we do the importantwork for students with an inaugural event such as this,” said Autumn Nabors, RPS Director ofCurriculum and Instruction. “Robotics helps to build critical and creative thinking, teamwork,perseverance and so much more. I’m thankful to great partners like FIRST Chesapeake forproviding these opportunities for our children.”

About FIRST® Chesapeake

FIRST Chesapeake dba VirginiaFIRST administers the FIRST Tech Challenge Program in Virginia andthe FIRST Robotics Competition Program for the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia. Each year,FIRST Chesapeake directly impacts over 6,700 middle and high school students through roboticsworkshops and competitions. Over 50,000 individuals attend 18+ FIRST Chesapeake roboticscompetitions from December through April each year. To learn more about FIRST Chesapeake, go towww.firstchesapeake.org.